CALL CENTRE MANAGERS TAKE THE ROUGH WITH THE SMOOTH

Call centre managers are very satisfied with their jobs, a survey from Customer Interaction Management software provider, Noetica, has found. This is despite the fact that the vast majority is working in excess of 40 hours per week. Interviews with 70 UK-based call centre managers were carried out to delve deeper into their daily working experiences, with the aim of unravelling truths behind the call centre’s ‘sweatshop’ image.

Half of the managers surveyed are responsible for teams of between 50 and 200 people. Contrary to the image of the call centre, and the pressures associated with managing large teams, many managers say they get job satisfaction, with 16% adding that they are ‘very satisfied’ with their job. Call centre managers do not underestimate the importance of motivating staff, and use a variety of motivational methods to keep morale high, including items such as effective communication, the promotion of team spirit, and involving agents in decisions. The provision of doughnuts, alcohol, and even cheap travel also rank highly.

Almost half of all managers say that meetings are their most time-consuming activity, with many spending as much as 30 hours per week immersed in these gatherings. A third of managers say the preparation of reports is also very time-intensive. In addition, the proliferation of email has placed a strain on call centre managers, who cite email among the top three time-eaters. Almost half are regularly cutting out lunch breaks for work, a further display of their time commitments. Interestingly, managers cite people as the best aspect of their job, and pressure as the worst. One example of a call centre manager’s frustration was getting his staff to make him coffee – he believed this was his most time-consuming activity! They also thrive on the variety offered up by the job, and enjoy providing customer satisfaction.

Noetica’s Commercial Director, Keith Symondson, comments on the findings, “It’s refreshing to find a different perspective on the call centre. Contrary to the gloomy picture often painted about call centres, we have discovered that managers are happy, and thrive in their environment, despite the pressures of the job.”

Copies of the survey are available from Claire Adam or Natalie Johnson at MCC International

Noetica is a Scandex Group company

About Noetica

Established in 1997, Noetica is a leading developer of innovative software solutions for the successful management of customer interactions in the call centre and over the web. NoeticaCR is based on the technology used in their successful Synthesys callflow/scripting product and enables non technical staff to deploy the same callflow applications used in the call centre over the web. Part of the privately controlled holding company the Scandex Group, Noetica is based in Clapham Junction, London, with strategic partners throughout Europe, Canada, Asia and the US. Noetica serves a broad range of industries, including the public sector, finance and telecommunications. For further information on Noetica, please visit http://www.noetica.com

Synthesys and NoeticaCR are registered trademarks of Noetica.

Editorial Contacts

Interviews, photography and further information are available from Claire Adam or Natalie Johnson at MCC International.